Epstein Secrets

ould not preclude she would not consult with others about the offer he was making her. Since her current documentary project included interviews with Assange, Appelbaum and three ex-NSA executives, intelligence services with sophisticated surveillance capabilities might also have taken a professional inter

ized release of communications intelligence documents could violate US espionage laws. Even so, there was no shortage of activists overseas, such as Assange, who would be willing to publish NSA documents revealing its global surveillance activities. And in answer to his rhetorical question, he no doubt kn

er HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020154 Chapter Ten Raider of the Inner Sanctum Chapter Eleven Escape Artist Chapter Twelve Whistle Blower Chapter Thirteen Enter Assange Chapter Fourteen Fugitive PART THREE The Counterintelligence Conundrum Chapter Fifteen Did Snowden Act Alone Chapter Sixteen The Question of When C

position since the top- secret unit was responsible for discovering and countering the threats posed by Chinese, Russian and other adversary nations. Ledgett was also the logical choice to head the damage assessment investigation since the Center’s regional branch in Hawaii was from where highly-sensitive

rded among hacktiv- ists that Assange chose him as his keynote speaker replacement at the Hackers on Planet Earth (HOPE) convention in New York City. Assange told Rolling Stone, “Jake [Appelbaum] has been a tireless promoter behind the scenes of our cause.” For its part, Rolling Stone titled its profile of

zed release of communications intelligence documents would violate U.S. espionage laws. Even so, there was no shortage of activists overseas, such as Assange, who would be willing to publish NSA documents revealing its global sur- veillance activities. Cyberpunks, as these activists called themselves, tend

ell was transferring files held at Fort Meade to backup computers in Hawaii. He “was moving copies of that data there for them,” said Deputy Director Ledgett, “which was perfect cover for stealing the [NSA] data” through the fall and winter of 2012. The security mea- sures at the Hawaii base presented no o

to The New York Times, and he suggested as punishment “those people should be shot in the balls.” Either he had a change of heart, or he was telling Assange what he believed he wanted to hear. Assange counseled Snowden to go directly to Russia. “My advice was that he should take asylum in Russia despite

am headed by Richard “Rick” Ledgett, who was then director of the NSA’s Threat Opera- tions Center at the NSA’s headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland. Ledgett was the logical choice to head the damage assessment inves- tigation because the center’s regional branch in Hawaii was under his command. Ledgett fl

n camera in his Hong Kong interview in June 2013 that NSA investi- gators would have “a heart attack” when they discovered the extent of the breach. Ledgett, the NSA official who had conducted the damage assess- ment, while not having a heart attack, confirmed that Snowden had taken a massive number of do

rmation War” Guardian, Jan. 30, 2011. 99 Sarah Harrison: Sarah Ellison, “The Man Who Came to Dinner,” Vanity Fair, Oct. 2013. 99 Snowden telephoned Assange: Assange interview, in Giles Whittell, “Julian Assange Unmasked,” Sunday Times (London), Aug. 29, 2015. 99 “Snowden told me they had abused Manning”

es to Russia.” 41 Physical Phatness: Lindsay Mills’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com /lindsay.mills.90/about. 42. the first known document: Ledgett revealed this in an interview with Vanity Fair. Burrough, Ellison, and Andrews, “Snowden Saga.” 42 “He stole the [NSA] test”: Snowden’s obtaining th

“I, Spy.” “was moving copies of that data”: Burrough, Ellison, and Andrews, “Snowden Saga.” 45 he later pointed out: Bamford, “Edward Snowden.” 45 Ledgett subsequently reported: Burrough, Ellison, and Andrews, “Snowden Saga.” 45 This theft was made: Michael Hayden, interview with author. 46 “Icrossed

h one of his senior staff members to help him engineer his escape to Russia. That senior staff member was Sarah Harrison, After speaking to Snowden, Assange called Harrison, who was in Melbourne, Australia. She had gone there a month earlier to help organize Assange’s somewhat quixotic election campaign f

nwhile, Snowden was organizing his own exit from Hong Kong. He placed a call to Julian Assange. HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020256 105 CHAPTER THIRTEEN Enter Assange “Thanks to Russia (and thanks to WikiLeaks), Snowden remains free.” — Julian Assange Born on July 3, 1971 in Queensland, Australia, Julian Assange h

se “bread crumbs” were missed by the NSA according to its statement. It is within the realm of possibility that the NSA Damage Assessment team under Ledgett falsified its finding to inflate the number of documents that Snowden stole. NSA executives also might have lied to Congress to the same end. But why

ardian, January 30, 2011 “Sarah Harrison, his comely...”—Sarah Ellison, “The man who came to dinner,” Vanity Fair, October 2013 “Snowden telephoned Assange...”-- Assange interview in (London) Sunday Times. Giles Whittell, “Julian Assange unmasked.” Times Magazine, August 29, 2015. Also, “Snowden told me

en had been held virtually incommunicado for 20 days. Other than Russian officials, the only person he had been allowed to see during this period was Assange’s aide, Sarah Harrison. “Where in the airport did you meet him?” I asked. Was it in a VIP lounge?” “Tt was in the transit zone,” he replied coyly.

ld walk out the door,” Snowden interview, German NDR TV, January 26, 2014. http://www.tagesschau.de/snowden-interview- englisch100.pdf “According to Ledgett, the perpetrator...” Tabassum Zakaria and Warren Strobel, “After 'cataclysmic' Snowden affair, NSA faces winds of change,” Reuters December 13, 2013